COVINGTON  Holmes High School senior Andrew Baker was selected as a winner in the 2000 National Council of Teachers English Achievement Award in Writing.

More than 3,000 students were nominated for the award. Each piece of student writing was read and evaluated by two judges, a high school and college English teacher.

Three recognized by nonprofit agency

Three people were recently presented with special recognition awards by New Perceptions Inc., a nonprofit United Way agency that enables infants and adults with developmental disabilities or mental retardation to reach their maximum potential. They are:

Nancy Culley of Edgewood, a retired New Perceptions staff member, for her career of service helping children with mental retardation and developmental disabilities; Chris Garlich of Fort Thomas, who volunteered many hours to modify and improve a client tracking software system for the Children's Services program; and Linda Mundew of Taylor Mill for the hours she volunteered to develop and implement a client tracking software system for the Adult Services program.

People You Know appears Sunday in The Kentucky Enquirer. To submit an item, write to People You Know, The Kentucky Enquirer, 226 Grandview Drive, Fort Mitchell 41017. You can fax items to (606)578-5565.

The Patriots Peace Memorial will be built on land donated by Humana chairman David Jones and his wife, Betty, near River Road. A competition among architects and artists will be held to decide the design of the memorial, said Ms. Jackson.

The idea was inspired by Nancy Simpson, the mother of an Air Force lieutenant who died while serving in the military.

Air Force Lt. Brice Simpson's F-16 fighter jet malfunctioned and crashed on takeoff in Misawa, Japan, in 1998. Seriously injured and burned, the soldier, a Fern Creek native, returned to the United States for treatment but died 57 days later at a military hospital in Texas.

Mr. Jones has agreed to raise the money to build the memorial and officials said the goal is to break ground next Memorial Day, with completion by Veterans Day 2001.

Officials said they believe 200 or more armed services members from Kentucky and Southern Indiana will be eligible to have their names inscribed on the memorial.

Counties call off flu shot event

LEXINGTON  Seven county health departments in central Kentucky have called off plans to administer flu shots next Saturday because they have been unable to get adequate supplies of vaccine.

Flu Shot Saturday, an annual event, was scheduled for Nov. 18. The Fayette, Anderson, Bourbon, Franklin, Madison, Mercer and Franklin County health departments had planned to jointly put on the event. It could be rescheduled later if enough vaccine arrives, said Antonia Ellis, the Fayette County Health Department's deputy commissioner for community nursing.

But the cancellation apparently means opportunities for the public to get flu shots in the Lexington area will continue to be scarce, at least for the next several days.

Man's efforts lead military dog adoptions

LOUISVILLE  A local dog lover's campaign to allow military dogs to be adopted after their service ends has paid off.

Earlier this week, President Clinton signed into law a bill that allows the dogs to be adopted by their handlers or others capable of caring for them.

Tom Johnston started an Internet petition two months ago to save military dogs. He lobbied Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, a Maryland Republican, to introduce the bill in the House of Representatives in September.

The new law requires the Defense Department to allow military working dogs to be adopted, rather than keeping them on a base until they die or are euthanized.

Mr. Johnston said he started the campaign after reading a story from an Ohio newspaper that said all military dogs are destroyed by the government after their service ends.

The account was not completely accurate, the military said. Although it is true that the dogs weren't allowed to be adopted because they are trained to be aggressive, it is false that they were always put to death, said Gary Emery, a spokesman at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, where military dogs are trained.

Mr. Johnston said even if the story has been embellished, his work is worth the effort.

LOUISVILLE  Two men have been arrested for their suspected involvement in a bank robbery in Lexington Thursday.

Lexington police responded to a robbery at Fifth Third Bank at about 11:24 a.m. EDT. Police later arrested Anthony Ray Chandler, 42, and Harrison Edwards Jr., 38, both of Louisville. The two are charged with robbery in the first degree and are being held in the Jefferson Co. Detention Center.

Police are investigating.

Man pleads guilty to paying kickbacks

HOUSTON  A Brunei, Texas, man pleaded guilty in federal court last week to paying kickbacks to an Ohio-based Air Force contractor.

He is the second of five defendants  including three Kentucky businessmen and an Ohio man  indicted in the alleged kickback scheme.

Vinij Kumsomboon, 46, was president of Southern Aerospace Inc., a Houston company awarded more than $200,000 in subcontracts involving repair and replacement of aircraft parts, federal officials said. With his guilty plea Wednesday, he faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced in February.

The subcontract was part of a larger prime contract awarded to Beavercreek, Ohio-based Science Applications International Corp. under the Foreign Military Sales Program, officials said.